Team 10 Ino, Shikamaru, and Nobu
by PhilosopherofthePen
Summary: Replaced Chouji with Shoten Nobu, a poor boy with a Kekken Genkai. His abolished clan are the only Oc's in the story. The first chapter has been edited. Read and Review, please.
1. Chapter 1

Shoten Nobu had never really had an easy life. He wasn't upset about it though; he was glad that he had so much trouble, because it defined who he really was.

Well, who was he, exactly? Nobu was of the Shoten clan, a family which was known for two things: it's recent history, and the fact that it had a kekkei genkai. The Shoten had the amazing ability of having large tenketsu, and their body was specially designed to internally mold chakra. This allowed Shoten family members to mold their body at their will, and release devastating amounts of charka with little extra effort. Their power in the latter was very similar to the Jyuuken style of combat that the Hyuuga utilized. They didn't have the finesse or accuracy that the Hyuuga used, so the users of the techniques just blasted randomly. This was no less effective, and they were constant rivals with the Hyuuga family.

Their fall fame into infamy, however, was majorly for their recent history: the Shoten family members were little better than street trash, and there was no actual clan. Orphans on the street were as often as not to have this mysterious ability.

The head of the clan, Shoten Sanoske, was the one responsible for this. In his lavish overindulgence, he embezzled the clan funds. Not only had they lost their honor with him, but also their homes. Sanoske had mortgaged all of the Shoten lands attempting to pay off his debts. He failed, and the Shoten were left on the street. Upset with the state of their clan, all of the Shoten Ninja spread across the world, forming their own, small, clan institutions, attempting to prevent a repeat of Sanoske's actions.

Nobu was one of those orphans on the street. He had to fend for himself for five years, taking care of himself and only himself in his desperate will to survive. The life of an orphan is never pleasant, especially when there is nowhere for one to go and one must turn to crime. But he was slightly luckier than his poor fellows who had to spend their whole lives that way.

When he was about five years, his uncle, also named Nobu, took him in. His uncle was an ex-ninja. He was eighteen years older than his younger sister, Yuki, who was Nobu's mother. She had died in the attack of the Kyuubi, right after the Sanoske debacle.

Uncle kind man, but was no good at raising children. Sometimes he regretted taking his nephew in, due to how close to living on the streets he was, but he was smart enough not to show Nobu his despair.

Nobu senior knew that he couldn't take care of Nobu forever. His retirement money was already sparse, and he would need to look for work once more if he was to support him. As soon as Nobu was old enough, he knew that the boy would need to become a ninja, like his parents. Uncle Nobu decided send him to the Ninja academy, hoping that Nobu would find success in an honorable job that would help the name of Shoten.

So, Uncle Nobu signed up Nobu junior into the Ninja Academy as soon as possible. The institution was completely free, since this was a hidden ninja village. Uncle Nobu told Nobu Junior about his decision. Little Nobu was happy that he was going to live like his parents as a ninja.

To help him prepare for school, and signify his well wishing for his nephew, Nobu's uncle saved up some money to buy him a lunch box, one of those metal ones that were very popular in the village. On the face, it had the famous rock formation of Konoha, with the engraved faces of the past Hokage.

"I know it'll be hard at school, Nobu. The Konohagakure Ninja Academy can be very competitive. But I know you. And I know that with some persistence, and a lot of hard work, you can do well." Nobu's uncle said "Now, shall we go to honor our name by starting your path in the way of the ninja?"

Nobu junior nodded enthusiastically. He had been anticipating this for weeks. He was willing to work hard because he knew that it would make Uncle happy. And right now, that was the only thing in the world that really mattered to him.

So off they went, so Nobu could start his learning at the ninja academy. It was a long walk to the academy; they lived in the poorer part of town, which was very far away. This was because this was a Ninja village, so the richer groups were either strong native clans, or important economic groups that needed to be protected by ninja. The two Nobu were neither. To be able to make it on time, they had to leave early in the morning. It was so early, that very few people were on the streets, and all of the stalls on the sides of the roads were closed. As they walked, Nobu's uncle gave him a rice dumpling to eat on the way to the Academy.

"I want to make sure that you are well fed for your first day at the Academy, Nobu." His uncle said as he handed it to him "If you do well, and try hard, maybe you can fight to earn back the reputation of our people and the honor lost."

"Uncle Nobu, why does everyone treat our family so badly?" Nobu asked. "Why do they treat us like we're criminals?"

"It's because a long time ago, we were actually powerful. Actually, we were once one of the most powerful clans in Konoha. We competed with the Hyuuga and the Uchiha for prestige" His uncle smiled, thinking of the happy times that must have occurred back then.

"But nothing is permanent, Nobu. Remember that all your life. Soon our clan fell. In the desperation to compete with the might of Byakugan and Sharingan, our leader squandered the treasury, attempting to look like we could live more richly than other clans. But the plan didn't work. We ran out of money, and we lost everything that we owned. Now, today, we are still reeling from our fall."

"But, Uncle, you're doing better than the others. You're not on the streets begging for money. Why did you do so well, while the others failed?" Nobu asked again, taking a bite out of his dumpling, savoring the food.

"Well, I got lucky." Uncle Nobu sighed "I tried to save up some money, after my ninja days were over. When the clan retirement plan ran out of money, I could fall back on that to support me. Combined with the fact that I live frugally, I've been able to last on the money for quite a while now. In the last few years, though, I've begun to have to work."

"Oh…" Nobu said quietly, as he continued eating the kind treat from his uncle.

Little more conversation occurred between the two as the traversed the roads and back roads on their way across Konohagakure to the Academy. The further they went, the more people showed up on the street, starting the day and their jobs.

As more people arrived, the inherent buzz became louder and louder as the day began to start. To the two Nobu and the families with children deciding to attend, or that already were attending, it was a special day, but to everyone else it was just an average day. Work moved on normally for them. Nothing special was going to happen to them. Most of them didn't even know that the day was another academy year.

Finally, they made it to the main academy building. It was a plain building with grey walls, situated directly in the middle of the large complex. The door had an overhang that was red, with the symbol for fire engraved in gold in it. Across from the building was a tree with a swing in it. The old tree gnarled and twisted, and probably had been there for over a hundred years, since the Shodaime, the first Hokage of Konohagakure.

The area outside the door was surrounded with parents and children who were starting to attend the academy, waiting for the greeting and orientation to begin. The students from pervious years that still were attending had already entered, to avoid the commotion of the new students arriving. Some of the parents who had either attended recently, or had older children who had gone through the academy were expecting what was going to happen.

With a bang, and a cloud of smoke, an academy Instructor appeared, wearing his Hiai-ate on his forehead, and a scar across his nose. Most of the children, including Nobu, were extremely surprised and slightly intimidated by the sudden appearance of the ninja. The adults, being much more experienced, were not very fazed by the standard ninja entrance.

"Welcome to the Konoha Ninja Academy!" The man said jovially, his warm eyes and even warmer moving over the crowd, bathing them in his friendliness "I am one of the instructors of the Konohagakure academy. My name is Iruka."

"Hello, Iruka-sensei" most of the children replied timidly, still shocked from the entrance.

"Before taking the children in, and assigning tasks, I would like to thank the parents. Your decision, and dedication to Konohagakure, to send your child to the Ninja Academy is a honorable choice that will teach children how to not only to exceed in the Ninja way, but also in life, as well as learning protect Konoha in the way of the Ninja."

As soon as his speech was over, the parents nodded respectfully, having heard the speech many times before, but stayed in the spot, waiting for their children to be called in.

"Now, if the academy students would step forward…" Iruka said. About thirty children stepped forward, in front of the parents. Their parents nudged a couple of them forward, because they were too shy themselves to step forwards. "Ah, thank you very much. Now the parents are free to go," Iruka said, waving them off.

As the parents milled about, talking to some other parents they knew, Nobu's uncle stood there. He quietly cried in joy for his nephew's first step to becoming a man. After a few seconds, he too turned away. He needed to find a job so he could support his little nephew until he learned to take care of himself.

Then, after all the parents had finally left, Iruka turned to the children. He smiled at the children, telling them "Follow me, follow me." And leading then into the academy.

A/N – Thank you very much for putting up with my fic. This was originally 947 words, and now it has more than doubled. I feel very proud of this fic. However, I dislike short chapters, so I am going back to all my chapters and enlargening them to a proper length. I can't stand those 2000 words a chapter stories when they his 100,000 words. It's like fifty chapters! Well sorry for the rant. And to let people know, the Shoten family is the only difference in the whole of the storyline. And to let people know, there will be only one more main character Shoten. I don't even know if she is going to be in this part of the story. After an arc is finished beyond the 100,000-word range, I'm going to start with another fic, continuing in the series.

Also, if my viewers would like to vote upon whether this fic will attempt to follow canon or not, just put a review up. I have ideas of how to continue the fic differently from end of Konoha invasion arc, or right after Sasuke retrieval arc. I won't tell the plots because then it would ruin the story. But, if you really want a general idea, email me at I just ask that you don't tell people if they don't want to know, but who am I kidding? Barely anyone reads this shuffles into the corner all emo-like

"You have me!" My Evil Twin from France Says, popping into existence on my shoulder

"Don't listen to him!" My ADD Conscience replies, also popping into existence "Ooh… pretty clouds" drools absentmindedly

"Shut up, guys, I really need to get this done! Oh, wait, I am done!" Hits self on head "Bye everyone, please review. Or there will be dire consequences" shakes fist "Really Dire! Bye!"


	2. Chapter 2

Inside, it was even better than Nobu had imagined. Never having been in anywhere as nice as this place, he had no idea what to expect. Inside, it was a long corridor with doors every twenty or so feet with numbers above each of the doors. The floor was wood, polished and ancient. But it was the walls that Nobu's attention.

They were a simple white color, but the walls had a welcoming glow to them. The walls made him think of a place in his memory, of his home before his parents had to turn him onto the streets. Even his uncle's home, which was his favorite place in the world, did not even compare to this building.

As soon as they entered, a strange kid in an orange jumpsuit hopped up and down in excitement exclaiming "cool!" Many of the kids laughed at his strange response and unrestrained excitement. Nobu was silent, too nervous to do anything yet, wishing not to upset his teachers.

Iruka-sensei turned around and smiled "Now, students, calm down please." The new students quickly quieted. "Well, welcome to Konoha Ninja Academy. This will be your school for the next three years, less if you excel" Iruka paused, remembering all of the genius students he had had the honor of teaching.

"Well, we need to get going." Iruka continued, breaking out of his reverie. "We need to get started. We're behind as is." Iruka began to walk, leaving the children to follow him down the hallway.

At the end of the hallway, the academy opened up to a large field. There were posts for shuriken throwing practice, and large stumps for practicing taijutsu strikes.

"This is the academy's Training field number one." Iruka started. "Most of the training fields are on the outskirts of Konoha, but until you can do the basics, virtually all practice will be done here at the academy"

As it is your first day at the academy, we are to do preliminary tests to see how proficient in taijutsu and shuriken throwing you are. And remember, this is basic skill. Since most of you won't know genjutsu or ninjutsu, those are prohibited for this testing"

Some kids brightened or cheered because they were going to have the chance to prove themselves above the rest so early in class. Others were just determinedly quiet, waiting to overcome the challenge that was placed in front of them.

Nobu was one of the quiet like the others. He was worried because, in his state of poverty, his uncle had had little money to buy shuriken for Nobu to practice with. Therefore, his shuriken accuracy suffered greatly, and had never amounted to much of anything.

On the other hand, his uncle spent as much time as he could in one of the Shoten clan styles, Douten fist. Named for the Earth style, Douten Fist was designed to hold against the most furious attacks, then hit back with a devastating blow that would do severe damage to the opponent.

"Well, lets get started with the shuriken throwing test!" Iruka continued enthusiastically. "Now, everyone form a line!"

All the new students shuffled into a moderately organized line. Nobu took a position near the back because he was worried about how well he would do. In front of him was the blond haired boy from earlier, boasting about how well he would do.

"I'm going to beat everyone!" He exclaimed loudly, prancing around. Everyone just avoided and ignored the strangely acting boy. Getting angry, he yelled, "You'll all see! I'm going to be the best! Yeah! I'm going to be the hokage! Believe it!" Unlike before, he wasn't ignored completely. This time, some of the kids decided to laugh at him. Before he could begin another round of boasting, he was at the front of the line.

"Uzumaki Naruto" Iruka called out, not even needing to ask the boy his name "Like the others, you'll have whatever time you need to throw these ten shuriken at the target. Vital spots in the head and chest parts will earn double points - "

"All right!" The boy yelled, jumping at the chance to prove himself rather than have to listen to his sensei's instructions.

He began chucking them at the target, but his aiming was horrible to say the least. Most of the shuriken missed, but one actually hit the target in the arm. The final shuriken was so far off, that it bounced off Iruka-sensei's forehead protector. That made his new teacher furious. As Iruka began to yell at the boy for his rashness, much of the rest of the class began to yell at the boy.

After writing something angrily down on his clipboard he called "Next!" Nobu walked forward.

"Name?" Iruka asked, looking warmly up from his clipboard.

"Shoten Nobu, Iruka-sensei" Nobu replied nervously.

"Ah…" Iruka's smile faded slightly at the mention of his surname, as he knew of the bad reputation the shattered clan had. Looking down the list, his eyes stopped, looking at a point on his clipboard "There you are, Nobu! Well, you heard the rules. Go ahead whenever you're ready."

Nobu gulped nervously, and walked to the throwing line. Picking up the shuriken, he held it in his hand to feel the weight of the small object that was so unfamiliar to him. Preparing to throw, he closed his eyes and summoned all his strength for the throw. And then he threw.

He heard a loud whistling and an even louder thunk. The shuriken had embedded itself deeply in the target's gut critical point.

"Very good, Nobu!" Iruka exclaimed brightly, thankful that the young Shoten was not as much of a troublemaker as many others of his family were "Go on."

Out of the other nine, he made five, but none hit vital spots like the first. Iruka congratulated him for his hard work, and wrote something down on his clipboard. As Iruka called for the next student, Nobu walked away from the throwing area very conflicted. He was very grateful he hadn't been a complete failure and actually did decently on the test, but he was upset that he didn't do better. If he was going to bring back honor to the Shoten clan, he would need more than adequacy in his tests.

Soon after, the line was finally completed, and they were paired up for taijutsu. Nobu was put with a sulky boy who had black hair tied back. Then he and the boy were paired up, the other boy took one quick look at Nobu and said "How troublesome."

Wanting to remember something about his partner, he thought back to the shuriken practice. The boy's name was Nara Shikamaru. He had had nearly perfect aiming at the shuriken throw, and didn't miss a single one.

"Hi, I'm Shoten Nobu" Nobu said warmly "You're Nara Shikamaru, right? You did great on the shuriken throw!"

Shikamaru gave him a grin "Yeah. That's me. And I guess I did okay on the shuriken throw. Shuriken throw's more my thing. Taijutsu is really tough. I can tell you're good at that, though."

"Yeah" Nobu said, surprised that the boy had been able to recognize his taijutsu talent just by looking at him. "My uncle didn't have a lot of money for shuriken, so I never got to practice. He couldn't afford Academy prep either. He had to train me himself. But he's a brilliant taijutsu master, and teaches me some moves. He's trying to rebuild the old techniques of the Shoten clan."

"Shoten?" Shikamaru asked "You mean all the people on the street?"

Nobu frowned at the negative connection his clan was getting "We used to be the biggest in Konoha. But then my ancestors embezzled the funds." Nobu sighed "Now even the clan townhouse is gone and none of us have any money. I'm just lucky my uncle saved me from the fate of the other orphans."

"It's their fault for living on the streets." Shikamaru said "There are people who try to help them."

"But the clan is too proud." Nobu replied "Taking charity is something my family does not like. But I'm going to change that. When I return the clan to it's honor, no one will look down on us and try to help us out."

Before Shikamaru could even say anything, or reply at all, it was their turn to spar.

"Nara Shikamaru and Shoten Nobu! It's your turn. Please, step out onto the training fields, and acknowledge your opponent." Iruka called out.

Both Shikamaru and Nobu advanced onto the field, turning to face each other at the center. A few feet to their right, Iruka stood, ready to commence the match.

"Okay, Shikamaru and Nobu, you've already heard the rules. No genjutsu or ninjutsu, and it'll last five minutes. Remember, this fight is to show how you have progressed in taijutsu. Try not to hurt each other. If someone is knocked out, the match will end. Got it?" Iruka asked

Both Shikamaru and Nobu nodded their heads, replying with the affirmative.

"Well then," Iruka said with a smile "Begin!" He exclaimed while quickly jumping back.

Shikamaru dropped into a basic stance at the academy prep school, a luxury that Nobu had never had.

Nobu, however had trained with his uncle instead. Leveling his feet, and crouching slightly, he brought his forearms parallel to the ground, with his hands curled into his fists, settling into the one stance of Douten Fist.

Shikamaru and Nobu stood. They waited for the other to crack, and attack the other. Shikamaru was extremely patient for a kid his age, and against most other ninja. But all of Nobu's training was based on waiting for the first attack to come.

Without warning, Shikamaru came in with a sweeping kick. He realized that the stance was designed to hold from one position, and forcing Nobu to move would defeat the stance.

But Nobu didn't dodge the attack. Instead, he rose his left leg, and shifted some weight out of his right leg. He brought his foot down onto Shikamaru's knee, knocking the boy flat on his back. It was merely an interruption move, which was designed to stop an attack, so it did not hurt the other boy.

Without leaving an opening for Nobu, Shikamaru rolled back away and out of his range. Getting up out of his roll, he circled the other boy, looking for any opening. Seeing none, he charged in, preparing to strike out with his arm.

As soon as Shikamaru was within grappling distance, Nobu grabbed the other boy's arm and elbow with both his arms. Pivoting 180 degrees on the spot, and bending his right knee, he threw Shikamaru over him.

Like a cat, Shikamaru twisted and turned until he had righted himself in the air and landed on the ground. Chuckling, he said "You're pretty good."

Nobu grinned back friendly "I told you my Uncle's a great teacher." Nobu rose from his pivot, but otherwise didn't move from the spot.

Seeing that there was no way of tricking this ultimate defense, Shikamaru decided to put everything into this final attack as a last ditch effort to beat the boy.

Charging, Shikamaru prepared to unload a rapid flurry or kicks and punches to Nobu, going through everything he had learned in his taijutsu classes. He was beginning to regret the fact that he thought they were useless, and slept through most of them.

Nobu blocked any hits that were aimed at vital organs, but there were so many attacks that he found it easier to let some of them in. Every now and then, he would feel sharp pains whenever his opponent's fists and feet connected with his body. He knew that this was a lot of what Shikamaru had left. A finishing move after the barrage would be a good way to end the test.

After a few seconds, Shikamaru's onslaught began to tire and slow down. The attacks had less frequency, and even when he let them connect, they hurt much less than before. Closing his fists, and pulling them back, Nobu prepared to use his finishing move. Shikamaru predicted what the other boy was about to do, and thankfully he had quick reflexes that allowed him to jump away.

But even his speed could not save him from Nobu's devastating attack. Right before Shikamaru was out of Nobu's range, he slammed his fists into Shikamaru's gut with the strength of many years of training and practice.

Thrown through the air like a ragdoll from the combined forces of his jump and Nobu's punch, Shikamaru rolled head over heels. When he finally stopped a good fifteen yards away, he was out cold.

For a moment, time stopped for the mortified Nobu. He didn't mean to hurt Shikamaru. Whenever he hit his uncle with the attack, it would barely faze him. But more importantly, he liked the boy, strange as he was. His powerful insight and quick thinking put respect for him in Nobu's eyes. He had even hoped to be friends. But how could he do something so cold and heartless to someone he wanted to be a friend to?

As quickly as they could, both Nobu and Iruka rushed to help the unconscious Shikamaru. As Iruka picked up the limp boy in his arms, Nobu began to cry and apologize profusely.

"I'm so sorry, Iruka-sensei" Nobu choked through the tears "I had no idea I'd hurt him!"

Iruka took one look at the kid to see if he was really telling the truth, and satisfied, he said "Don't worry, Nobu I saw it was an accident. I'm just surprised that you could hit him so hard. You're pretty strong for your age."

Continuing on to carry Shikamaru inside to the academy, he said. "Shikamaru will be fine, Nobu. Don't worry! The med nins will just take him to the hospital to make sure that he's fine." Before heading inside, he yelled to the rest of the class "Class dismissed You can all go home. We'll all finish the testing tomorrow!" The kids cried out in joy for their slightly early freedom from class.

"Can I go visit Shikamaru in the hospital?" Nobu asked "I want to apologize to him."

Iruka smiled warmly down at the worried boy "Of course you can Nobu. Why don't you have your uncle take you?"

Nobu nodded, and headed out of the academy, trudging dejectedly. His uncle was waiting for him outside. Uncle Nobu's glowingly warm smile began to fade when he saw how upset his beloved nephew was.

"What's wrong, little Nobu?" his uncle asked, using his favorite nickname. He only used his favorite nickname when he was worried. "Are you okay."

"Why didn't you tell me Douton Fist was so dangerous?" Nobu asked, the tears springing anew from his anguish.

"What?" His uncle asked, completely confused. When his nephew was able to choke out the whole story of what happened during the day, realization dawned on the man's face.

"Well, let me explain, Nobu," His uncle said in a soothing voice "But you'll need to stop crying, okay?" Nobu sniffed and nodded. After a few seconds, the crying was gone but for the red face and the hiccups.

"Douton Fist is an actual combat style, Nobu. It's meant to hold out until you can hit your opponent. When you connect, you're meant to hit them hard and hurt them. You're only 10 now. Think how much damage you would have done if you were my age." While that sunk in to the younger Nobu's mind, he continued, "the finishing moves are meant to knock out or kill your opponent. Don't use them on people unless you fully expect them to be hurt by it, okay?" Nobu nodded in agreement.

"Good. Now shall we go home now, Nobu?" He asked kindly.

"Actually, uncle, I was wondering if you could take me to the hospital." Nobu said quietly.

"You want to see your friend?" Uncle Nobu asked. Younger Nobu nodded "Very well then. Let's go." Ant they headed off down the street, headed to the hospital.

A/N: Well, considering there has been a lack of support in this fic, I was thinking of ending it with just the first chapter, but I feel something good about this. I want to get to at least chapter 10 on this one. This is a surprisingly long chapter to me, but I like the way it played out. Instead of having short, choppy scenes, I have a long scene that would probably last somewhere near an episode.

Preview for chapter 3: Nobu goes to the hospital to apologize to Shikamaru, and to become friends.

After that, I'll probably skip 3 years to after the academy training, to the day after he gets his headband. Otherwise, I could start up a short arc bringing up Ino, but I like the genin stuff more. Please leave a review if you want it one way or another. Please don't e-mail suggestions to me, because I habitually avoid it, and it could take months to actually read it.


	3. Chapter 3

After some walking, Nobu and his uncle finally made it to the district that the hospital resided in. The district was one of the rich parts of town, a myriad of stores carrying all sorts of luxuries were lined up on the large avenue leading to the hospital. Fine dining, the latest fashions, "ancient artifacts", and ninja equipment would barely cover what they saw passing down the road.

Seeing the uninterrupted prosperity of the people who lived here, Nobu felt mixed feelings. He felt happy knowing that his once powerful family used to have more money than this whole street combined. He felt bitter at the fact that their power and greatness was no more. He felt longing to have just some of the great riches that this district had. But most importantly, he felt determined to bring honor and power back to his fallen family name.

It did not take long for the two to make their way to the Konoha hospital building. Massively large, it was designed to hold many injured nins. It was originally built during a large, long forgotten war with another country, so it could hold hundreds of ninja at a time within its walls. Now, it is mostly empty during the peacetime, but once in a while a nin is injured bad enough on a mission to warrant a bed.

Walking inside the building, Nobu looked inside. The whole place had a sterile white look. The flooring was made of tiles about the size of Nobu's palm. The walls could have been made of wood, or metal, or even mortar, but it was hard to tell. The building was so old that they put multiple coats over the walls.

The reception desk had three female medical nins sitting at the large desk built into the wall, writing reports about the patients that resided within their walls. The two Nobus walked up the reception desk. Nobu tensed up in nervous anticipation of what was going to happen.

"Hello," the young medical nin said, looking up at both of them and smiling warmly "How can I help you two?"

Looking down, Nobu mumbled ashamedly, remembering why he had come to the hospital. "We're here to see someone…"

"Well…" The medical nin said quizzically, not understanding the situation at all, asked "Who are you here to see?"

"N… N… N…" Nobu stuttered, still ashamed of the damage he had caused. Noticing his hesitance, his Uncle stepped in, sighing to himself.

"Naru Shikamaru." Uncle said, feeling sorry for his little nephew at this point. Nobu's ashamedness really drove it in at this point how afraid of he was of the powers his uncle had gave him.

"Ah…" The receptionist nin said, looking down the hospital list to find the patient's room. With a sound of recognition, she looked up and smiled at Nobu "Here we go! Room 103."

Uncle Nobu thanked the receptionist, and they both turned towards the 100-section hallway. The hallway, unlike the rest of the hospital had severe burn damage in the walls, supposedly from the war. The hospital was never painted over there, as remembrance that even a hospital is not safe from the ravages of war. It was an important lesson, but everyone had to learn it the hard way back then.

Door number 103 was the second on the left. It was a white door with a cold silver handle. When Nobu looked at that handle, he saw all of his fears. His fears of never bringing power to his clan… or worse. If he became known for being a dishonorable and evil ninja, he would kill himself for bringing dishonor to the name he so desperately fought for in its honor.

But what he feared more than anything now was the possibility that he had hurt his new friend so badly. If he let something so irreprehensible happen, he was no good as a ninja. And if he wasn't a ninja fighting for the honor of the clan, then he had no purpose in this world. If that was the case, he would have to destroy any records of him, then himself. He would need to make it so the world never knew that there was a Shoten Nobu the second that ever existed in Konoha.

His hand, quivering violently, reached out for the cold, forbidding door handle. After what felt like an eternity to the young Nobu, his hand clasped it. Gulping audibly, he turned the handle.

Inside, the room was white and sterile, just like the rest of the behemoth building. There were two beds, separated by a curtain. Near the door was a sink and a cabinet with some basic medications laying on top of the counter. Laying on the bed closer to the two Nobus was Shikamaru, sitting there, staring up at the clouds through the window opposite his bed.

"I'll let you go in there by yourself." Uncle Nobu said quietly and comfortingly, not moving from his position next to the door. "Now, don't be rude Nobu. Knock before you enter."

But before Nobu could even raise his hand to announce his presence, Shikamaru spoke up. "Come on in. It's so troublesome, knocking."

Nobu entered the room, head hung in shame. But Shikamaru noticed this.

"What's wrong, Nobu?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'm so sorry, Shikamaru. I didn't mean to hurt you!" Nobu blurted out, nearly sobbing.

"Nani?" Shikamaru asked "Oh, the fight." He said, realizing.

"I shouldn't have hit you so hard!" Nobu said, upset that Shikamaru could be so calm about this distressing situation.

"Meh," Shikamaru said "It was troublesome, but it didn't hurt that much. I was out pretty much after you hit me. Actually, I should thank you, Nobu." Shikamaru said, grinning tightly.

"Why?" Nobu asked, confused.

"Well, the fight might have been troublesome, but now I just get to lie down and watch the clouds." He grinned wistfully, and turned to Nobu "Sometimes, I wish I was a cloud. So high up there, with nothing to do and nothing to care about."

Nobu turned to look up at the sky, taking in the beauty he never really had the time to take in. "You're right, Shikamaru. Those clouds have it so easy. But, don't you think it would be a bit boring with nothing to do?"

For the second time that day, Shikamaru paused to think because of Nobu's insight. "It might seem boring to you, but to me, a calm peace with nothing to do is all I can hope for. With all the pressures in the Academy, and my mom nagging at me all the time, I wish I just had nothing to do or care about."

Nobu took a look at the Nara boy. He looked so happy and peaceful. If you didn't know better, you wouldn't even know that he had just had a concussion. He knew that Shikamaru was interesting, but it was so strange for him to aspire towards something so boring… not to mention impossible. But with all the pressures, he guessed that wishing out was bound to happen to everyone who has a hard time.

"So… you came to apologize because you're sorry for this afternoon?" Shikamaru asked, not looking away from the clouds. "Well, don't be. It was an accident. These things just happen. But just because they happen no matter what doesn't mean they're not troublesome."

"Shikamaru, do you mind if I stay and watch the clouds for a bit with you?" Nobu asked, relieved that Shikamaru wasn't angry with him.

"Sure," Shikamaru said. Nobu sat down on the doctor's stool, and began to stare out the window, ceasing to care about anything else for the moment.

"You know, Nobu." Shikamaru said, "I think this is going to be the start of a great friendship."

Surprised, Nobu turned to Shikamaru and asked "Do you really mean it?"

"Yeah," Shikamaru replied "I think so. I think it's because you ask questions that I actually have to think about. Normally that would be troublesome, but I enjoy them because the questions aren't so boring."

"Thanks, Shikamaru" Nobu said. After that, a few minutes passed with them staring at the sky.

Nobu's uncle, tired of waiting outside, decided to come in and check up on his nephew. Knocking on the door, he opened it, and stepped into the room.

"Nobu." He said "Ready to go?"

"Uncle, do you mind if I spend some more time with my friend?" Shikamaru asked, "We're watching clouds."

Nobu's uncle chuckled, remembering how sometimes he used to do that then he felt lazy on jobs. But he was too old to go around doing that anymore. Mostly, he felt guilt for teaching Nobu such a dangerous technique without teaching him the ethics. Combining that with the fact that he was happy that Nobu had gained a friend, he decided to agree. "Sure, Nobu. But do you mind if I go take care of some business? I'll be back in half an hour or so."

"Sure, Uncle" Nobu replied, his eyes never leaving the glorious canvas of the sky and the peaceful clouds that floated upon the wind currents so high in the sky.

Nobu's Uncle smiled, and headed out the door. How ironic, he thought, that Nobu had made a friend by giving that same kid a concussion. He was still happy for the two new friends, as he left to take care of some business. From what he saw, those two would grow up to be strong friends.

A/N. Well, I'm feeling dejected that no ore really puts reviews up for my creation, but I guess it's my fault for picking the least popular main character team in Naruto. The only holding it up is Shikamaru, because he's awesome! Sorry, my inner fanatic sprung out there Shoves my insane and rabid doppelganger of my imagination back into myself. Well, I'm following the main arc plotlines with Naruto, but if I make it to after the time skip… it'll all be coming straight out of my imagination. I've already got the plotline planned out for the most part, and I think it's cool. I finally got an editor and co-writer, so the quality or my work will be much better now Yay! Oh, and If you read, please review. When people show that they have a mild interest in this, it feeds my inner creativity… which has been kinda starving to death recently.

E/N. I've just started to edit this fic, and I'm going to help make it better. I like this fic and I'll try and help make sure that the OC is written in a way that is realistic. I am also the co-author, though I think that I will be doing more editing than writing. Thank you all for reading this fanfic! I would like to thank PhilosopherofthePen for the oppourtunity to work with him. He's a good freind and a great writer.


	4. Chapter 4

Over the three years after that fateful day in the Academy, Nobu had grown so much. Whatever time he didn't spend with his uncle training Doton Fist, he was with Shikamaru, watching clouds. Sometimes Shikamaru tried to teach Nobu the game Shogi. Nobu got the basics for it, but he never hat the competitive finesse that Shikamaru had obtained through years and years of practice.

Nobu never got as close and friendly to anyone but Shikamaru. He had thought the strange orange kid's determination was something very admirable, but his immaturity was so great that no one could stand him. He pulled pranks almost daily, but the other students just resented the Uzumaki's existence as much as they could, and hoped that it would just die out if everybody just ignored him.

But Nobu saw these as cries for attention. Growing up on the street, one of the most common ways to push you above the crowd that slumped down in the slums was to do something to attract someone's attention. That was, in fact how he met his uncle. Nobu had taken to dancing for money on the corner of one of the streets. Somehow, his Uncle Nobu had recognized him, and took him, in spite of the financial troubles the man already had.

Over his time at the academy, Nobu had grown physically. Before, he was gaunt and sallow-eyed, due to his harsh time upon the streets. With the more time that passed, the shadow of his past slowly faded from his face. He grew his hair out a few inches, but never really liked it as long as some of the other boys in his grade. Growing taller, and thicker, he was much larger than much of the rest of his class. But that just made his taijutsu style even more powerful.

His uncle hadn't taught him any more taijutsu styles. When Nobu had asked his uncle why they never went beyond Doton Fist style during training one day, his uncle only replied, "The styles are difficult to learn, and dangerous to master. Maybe when you're older will you be able to learn Suiton Strike, the second in my five element style." With a quick acknowledgement of his uncle's words, Nobu had gone back to his training without asking any more questions of his uncle.

But from the three years, the one thing that was changed for him the most was his clothing. In earlier days, he had been forced to wear hand-me-downs that his uncle had been able to get for very little. In those days, his uncle had very little money, and saved whatever he could. He was lucky if he got something that wasn't stained or ripped. His uncle sewed it up if it was ripped, but the kids at school still mocked him for the poor clothing.

The only one who didn't really make fun of him was Shikamaru. When Nobu asked him why he didn't find the clothes amusing, Shikamaru told him that even though the clothes were 'troublesome', Nobu was his friend. And friends just didn't hurt each other, especially over something so trivial as clothing. Nobu had felt warmed by his Shikamaru's steadfastness, and their friendship never had any trouble during school.

But now, for his graduation, his uncle bought him a dark grey sleeveless vest, and matching pants. All over the left half of the jacket were pockets designed to hold very small items, like medical pills. The right half had his design for the Shoten clan, a circle with five points, each representing an element of his uncle's style. His right arm was bandaged, a style that he fancied. On his hands were half-gloves with steel plate backings.

In the classes, he had mixed success with the basic techniques in the class. His taijutsu and henge no jutsu were some of the things that he excelled at. Iruka-sensei had often commented on the fact that he was one of the top students in those areas. Some other kids had resented the fact that he did better than him, and made fun of his poverty to hide that.

But his shuriken throwing and Bunshin no Jutsu were things he struggled with. Barely passing his standards of being better than the class average, Nobu felt ashamed that he had trouble in those areas. But his uncle told him that the Shoten family was good at body-altering techniques, like the henge no jutsu, but suffered in other areas, like the bunshin no jutsu. 

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Today was the day. Now, Nobu was a Genin, a ninja in training. Yesterday, he had passed the testing, though he had some trouble with the bunshin no jutsu test. When he found out that Shikamaru had passed, Nobu felt that his life was perfect. Almost everything that he wanted to happen had happened. He felt the best he had felt in a long time, at least since Shikamaru explained why he didn't make fun of Nobu's poverty stricken clothing.

Only one thing had not happened the way Nobu wanted it was the fact that Uzumaki Naruto hadn't passed. The kid was tried hard when motivated, which Nobu admired, but he clowned around and had failed the exam. Nobu was a bit disappointed at first, but he decided that the kid wasn't serious enough to be honored for his rare bouts of actually putting effort into something.

But, strangely enough, Naruto walked in through the doors of the academy. Even stranger, was that he walked in with a Konoha headband on his forehead, grinning like an idiot. When people asked Naruto how he got the headband, he just laughed and said,

"It's a secret. Top ninja business, you know."

When people heard this, they just sighed and groaned at Naruto's pompous attitude. Rumors had been going around that one of the teachers; Mizuki-sensei had been arrested last night for treason. Some of the kids even went as far as to link Naruto to this, seeing it as a strange coincidence.

But whatever the strangeness of the occurrence, the day had to go on. All the young genin filed into the classroom. The kids that had arrived so far anticipated the excitement of being put into a genin team. This was important, because they were going to be in those teams for a very long time.

Nobu, not really one of the popular kids in the academy, didn't really care about which team he was on. He just hoped that he would be in Shikamaru's group. They were close friends, and over the years had become nearly inseparable. To be in different teams now would be unbearable for the two. 

Eventually, class was going to start soon. Everyone settled down into their seats, nervous what was going to happen. The insanity of the classroom just increased as every second was spent. Ino and Sakura got stuck in the door, racing to the academy, and Naruto tried, and failed, to pick a fight with Sasuske. But none of that really mattered.

Iruka-sensei walked in the door, being as punctual as usual. Addressing the class, he yelled, "Calm down, everyone! It's time for Genin team assignments." As soon as he said that, everyone quieted down, wanting to find out whom they would be teamed up with. An almost palpable silence fell onto the room, suffocating the inhabitants.

"First of all," Iruka-sensei started, "I'm honored to have taught you all through the course of these three years. But…" Iruka-sensei paused for a moment as he collected himself. "We must not dwell on this right now. We have more important things to do here now."

Iruka-sensei looked down at his list, rattling off names. Everyone waited attentively as names were called out. Nobu wasn't called, and so wasn't Shikamaru. Nobu's hopes rose as team after team was named. Finally, there were only three names left unnamed.

"Team 10…" Iruka-sensei said, pausing for a moment to read the names "Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Shoten Nobu." 

Inside, Nobu cheered heartily, but held his calm on the outside. Since all the names were called out, the groups were told to group together to be ready for their team leaders to arrive. Shikamaru and Nobu found each other quickly, and took a seat outside after finding Ino. Ino quickly attempted to assert her dominance over the two.

"I'm so much smarter than you two!" Ino boasted contemptuously. "And that's why you're going to make me the boss of this! You hear?"

Nobu and Shikamaru groaned at her annoying banter. She was like this through the three years that they were at the academy, but they weren't used to her directing it at them. They tried to just ignore her but she just got angrier and angrier.

One by one, the team instructors came to pick the students up. Eventually, it was just them and Team 7. Even Iruka-sensei had left the rest of the students in the classroom to wait. Eventually, a grizzled man with a cigar in his mouth poked his head in. Looking around, he growled. "I'm here to pick up team 10."

Shikamaru, Nobu and Ino rose, and approached him. "We're team 10." Ino said, once more attempting to take dominance over the team. Shikamaru just nodded silently, agreeing with her.

"Okay. Let's go, then." The strange Jonin growled, turning, and walking out the door. The three new genin were left to follow him.

Hurrying down the hall, they caught up with their instructor, falling in stride. Ino coughed violently from the pungent smell of the smoke from the cigar her instructor was smoking. Frowning, she began to yell at her teacher.

"Why are you smoking? It's bad for your health, and it smells horrible! Put it out!" She screeched.

Their teacher just growled in a good humor "If the hokage can't get me to stop smoking, then I'm guessing that you won't. And anyways, you shouldn't try to order your sensei around, should you?"

Ino backed off at her new teacher's instructor. They continued to walk, and finally reached their old training field, Training Field 1. Their teacher turned around and leaned against one of the Taijutsu poles, grinning.

"Well, let's introduce ourselves" their teacher growled out, good-naturedly.

"Why don't you start, sensei?" Ino said, slightly irritated by the earlier reprimand.

"Very well then," he growled "I'm Sarutobi Asuma, Combat Jonin of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. I like smoking, and fighting. I hate people who try to get me to stop smoking. Why don't you go now, loudmouth?" Asuma said, clearly meaning Ino.

"Fine!" Ino said, even more upset and angry than earlier. "I'm Yamanaka Ino. I like Sasuske, and flower arrangements. I hate people who disagree with me!" She growled, fuming.

"Next you, lazy guy." Asuma said, referring to Shikamaru.

"How troublesome," Shikamaru said quietly to himself. "I'm Naru Shikamaru. I like clouds, and I hate annoying people who nag me."

"Okay…" their sensei said, slightly surprised by the answer. "So, we've got a Nara, a Yamanaka, and a…" he paused to wait for Nobu's answer.

"I'm Shoten Nobu" Nobu said, noticing his instructor's body stiffen slightly at the name. "I like lots of things, but nothing really in particular, and I hate people who pick on people because of their family backgrounds." 

"So…" Asuma said again, pausing once more, "A Shoten, a Yamanaka and a Nara. What an interesting team." Thinking to himself, he quickly broke out of his reverie, "Well, let's get down to business."

All three of the new genin stopped in surprise at the short phrase, wondering what he meant by that.

"There is going to be a test, to make sure that you are really genin material. Only two thirds of the students will pass."

They all started in surprise, even Shikamaru, who muttered 'how troublesome' under his breath. 

"Every Jonin teacher is allowed to pick what sort of test he administers to his students." Asuma said "And since I'm a Combat Jonin, the test will be to see if you can hit me. If you hit me, then you will pass."

The three genin stared in surprise. Ino fumed to her about how she would show this annoying teacher whose boss. Shikamaru thought how troublesome the fight was going to be. Nobu just sat there, determined to overcome this new challenge.

A/N.  
Fourth Chapter is here! Yay! I'm finally getting into the equilibrium of things here, so chapters will generally hover around this level. Thank you all for looking at my fic, but if you could review, I would really, really, love that! And if you have any questions about the fic, feel free to ask them. I am a consummate review-feeder.


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